Now that I am home a bit more than the last few months, I am proud to announce I will be providing Resolume lessons. I have worked with both Resolume Arena and Resolume Avenue, and have worked with these programs in a professional setting for many years. I would be happy to help vis skype or screenshare to teach others the finer points of the programs. I can help with not only how to get started, but also how to become more advanced as well.

-Basics and where to start

-Midi contoller setup

-OCS mapping

-Advanced video mapping setup

-Effect controls

-Source help and content routing

Rates start at $60 USD an hour and can be done both via screenshare or in person if local to the Boston area.

We finally are releasing the recap from Visualize Somerville! This is a product of so much dedication and work from many talented teams of artists.
I came up with this idea almost 2 years ago, and since then it has been a rollercoaster ride of ups and downs. We almost didn’t have it happen….twice!
But becuase of the crew around me and a massive effort at the end, we came together and produced a unique event that I am truly proud of. The documentary team, Above Summit, really came

in and blew it away with the video capture. Time lapse rigs, drones shooting video, and a full crew to capture the moments. I am glad that the art show got some credit too, that was a part I didn’t know

would be so much work! The artists were very helpful and the work they put up was really breathtaking. All I can hope is people had fun and will want to do it again. I got the thumbs up from both venues, who know where we

The Vj competition was amazing, we had 8 Vjs come in from all parts of the New England area and it was a blast, I will post an update with a video recap when I have some time. The winner was none other than Projectile Objects from Philly. He did an amazing job! All in all though we had a great time and it really showed, which was the whole point. a bigger recap will come with more media from it. Here is a few pictures from the night.

VIZUALIZE SOMERVILLE

Sadly I had to delay this event to the fall. The equipment at the very last second we were to use ($50,000 worth of equipment, happily insured) was under 4 feet of water! The shop that the equipment was in had a pipe burst in the ceiling and this filled up the room. With no other way to get that amount of equipment (which was donated by 4D New England), I had no choice but to delay it until after I am back. Speaking of..

I am happy to say that I am posting this from London in a hostel and have started my backpacking tour through Europe. I already have gone through Iceland, and have been in London for a few days. Next up is Scotland to see my cousins, then to Brussels, then Amsterdam, then Paris. More to come on that! I likely will link my Tumblr to this blog to keep everyone updated too.

This Sunday I went down to Brooklyn Boulders in Somerville with a few friends. We brought out our drones and flew them all around this amazing rock gym that opened its door less than a year ago. Amazing spaces call for amazing video shoots, and how better to do that then with a few drones?

Below is a post that Bill of Iflycameras did a great video wrapup of some of the shots we did!

I finally compiled the time lapse of the entire day and night of Project MUM. We spent from 9am (some of us were there at 7am!) till 9pm setting up the various projects, art pieces, and configurations for the show. It was exhausting but very much worth it in the end! The party turned out amazing.

…I ended up doing a bit too much this time around. I set up a installation project, I vj’d, I was media contact during the event for complaints, and also somehow attended and was host as well. At one point I had to VJ, as well as run to my installation which had crashed every 15 minutes, and it was on the other side of the party! I was dead tired after that, and I realized next time I need an assistant or to do less work.

One of my pet projects I did is above, and I was fairly happy with the outcome of it! It makes me want to buy a few more to have next time around (if you pay attention, you can see not only me fiddling with it but also that I moved the camera a few times)! Down the go pro rabbit hole I go…

The only thing that as unfortunate was that my project I was working on with my friend Yetkin only worked for about an hour ( I mentioned this in a post below). The computer totally crashed and I just did not have the time to reset it. Luckily it reset to the default background… of SPACE! Worked perfectly for the time, though it did require me giving it some continual TLC to keep it working.

Anyways, enjoy the time lapse (and the drone video below as well!). Community based art events are the best!

I have been slowly working on a project to create a large scale Slit Scan project.

This is a project that I am fairly passionate about, and luckily I have a friend that reminds me to get up and do something about it. Any great project is a give and take, and luckily I am surrounded by quite a bunch of highly intelligent creative people that help me further my projects and expand them into something simply beautiful.

What is Slit Scan? It is playing with the timing of the video/photo, often done in post production now, but also can be done live. I think anytime you can take a just a normal movement or action and magnify it so it becomes distorted or just bizarre to the viewer, it can show the beauty of regular movements. Playing with time distortion shows just how incredible our normal movements can be!

Below is a sample of what is to come done by my friend Yetkin. Very interesting stuff as he shows! more to come.

So since I created this blog I have only posted about VJ related projects. I have been doing much more as well, and I feel this is a great place to showcase that information as well! You will begin to see trickles of other interests I have, and maybe in the future even a shop with my creations on it.

Current Projects (might flesh some out into full posts later):

-Learning to fly Hexadrone (Aerosky 550 specifically)

-Producer of Project MUM (again) event in Somerville, MA. Due to land in September.

So I have a few Midi controllers kicking around my studio, and while I like all of them, I never feel like they essential to my Vj rig. The more I think about it, the more I realize I need one that will work well, have all the functionality I need, and be a road ready beast.

So I am taking the plunge and buying an Akai APC40. Many fellow visual artists use it, and it has received many good reviews. Picking it up tonight and using at my residency, Elements.

With the multiple sliders, knobs, and multicolor buttons, I am fairly certain that I will get the functionality I need to rock the screens even more. Look for my video with this new controller making things go out of control!

Pretty happy with how it is coming out. Done with a 3D Studio Max object and imported into Cinema 4D. First time working with Mograph Cloner and surface lights. This is for a show in Boston that is Mayan themed. Should be a good time. More pictures as they come.

What a great party that turned out to be! Hundreds showed up and really rocked the house that night. Costumes, stickers, crazy bikes, artwork, and energy was abound! Without a doubt I want to do it again. Really had a fun time heading up the video for this one.

I ended up using a cargo van as a projector mount for one of my dual projector setups. I will admit that the mounts created with the help of directions by VJ Kung Fu really showed their worth this time!

Special thank you goes out to SCUL, the (Djs Cosine Zero, Keith Matter, Fig) and VJ Serialcrusher for the visual reinforcements!

Check out some pictures Here. More to come when I get more pictures lined up.

Fairly excited about this now. I am headlining (as you can see) the visuals for the Psy Stage, and I am prepared to bring it out. Yosemite has seen nothing like what I am about to do to it. I have incredible new visuals and Whorld is in full action now with my dual setup. This will not be something to miss!

Whorld is a Vj program made by another Bostonite, Chris Korda. It is a great program that uses sacred geometry to create interesting and sometimes amazing organic images on the screen. To top it off, it can be used with USB controllers (suggested) or even Wiimotes if uses the right parameters. I would explain it more, but he pretty much sums it up on his site:

From Whorld.org

“Whorld is a free, open-source visualizer for sacred geometry. It uses math to create a seamless animation of mesmerizing psychedelic images. You can VJ with it, make unique digital artwork with it, or sit back and watch it like a screensaver.

Whorld’s visualization is controlled via parameters which can be adjusted manually, or modulated by oscillators. A given setting of the parameters and their oscillators form a patch. You can use the demo patches, or create your own.

Patches can be grouped together in a playlist. You can play patches manually, or Whorld can auto-play them for you. Whorld also includes a crossfader, which allows you to interpolate between two patches (AKA “tweening”).

Whorld is optimized for VJing. All of its functions are available in full-screen mode, via shortcut keys, mouse or trackball, and MIDI controllers. Whorld can be synchronized to music, using tap tempo, or MIDI clocks.”

…nuff said. I plan on using this more now that I have the ability to use it via my Macbook Pro (through Firewire). I really am looking forward to combine this unique program with Grand VJ and MapMapper sometime soon. Watch out, I think the effects will be Amazing. Videos and Pictures to come.

I just bought the MX613ST by BenQ. Not the best name, but I am fairly excited to have 2 new short throw projectors, especially with 2800 Lumens! Two of them! That is bright enough to be fairly bright in most venues. The short throw means that the projectors can be set up very close to a screen, which is very nice for any Vj projection system. We rarely know how much space we will have and finding a long throw can be very trying with many venues.

Also included is a the ability to have my own startup screen, so instead of having “BenQ” show up every time the projector starts up, I can have a custom logo appear! Very nice feature to have. And of course the abilities of HD projection and 3d capability is nice too. All in all a solid projector, and I am happy to have them for my Vj rig. Looking forward to projection some really funky places with these. Look for more videos starring these bright guys! Link below.

This is a cool new little device, a mini computer basically. About the size of a deck of cards, with 256MB of RAM and an SD card slot (which is also where you boot your OS from). The best part of this little device from a Vj standpoint is the included GPU and HDMI port. Oh, did I mention it is $35?

Having a GPU/HDMI means we will be able to use this stream out video that normally would slow this type of small device way down. I can imagine having 4-5 of these devices in the future, running a simple program or running a video to the music. Now since it just came out the programs/coding is not there yet, but like with another simple device, the arduino, I would assume with the current attention this is getting, those will come soon.

I use Arkaos Grand VJ for my video work. Though there are other programs out there that supply better flexibility, Grand Vj has come a long way in the past few years, including OSC and Syphon integration (which is amazing IMHO). Other programs I do enjoy and have dabbled in are Modul8, VDMX, Resolume, and 3L. They all have varying degrees of video manipulation/creation, but I do like my old fall back. I find it fits my style, which is to focus more on the content, rather then the tricks I can use to spruce them up.

The software that I like to use to create content is mostly Maxon’ Cinema 4D. It is an absurdly powerful program that I may never find the end to. Not only can you create lifelike images, but the program can also animate these images in amazing ways. I would check it out if you have a Apple computer, and if not, then you can check out 3D Studio Max or Maya, which is very much like. A great outlet for tutorials and information about this Cinema 4D is a chap named Greyscale Gorilla. Love his tutorials!

Other programs I dabble in are Adobe Aftereffects other methods of making clips, and Apple’ Final Cut Pro for editing video. Without these programs, I would be dead in the water.

Of course there are many other programs out there that do the same thing, but regardless of that these have seemed to won out in my personal opinion. I would suggest up and coming VJs to try out the other options out there too, everyone has a different way of going about working on content, and my ways may not work for you.

The ADVC55, despite is less than user friendly name, is a device that allows analog video inputs to be converted to digital form and input to my Macbook Pro through the Firewire. This is essential since these days many of the inputs I am running out to are HDMI. Unfortunately for many of us VJs, this is a problem, as the transition from analog to digital has been a painfully expensive process. To purchase an analog video mixer cost around $400(used) and upwards into the thousands. With digital HDMI mixing, the cost STARTS in the thousands. Big $$$. So this little device is a good workaround. Now I can input other computers/cameras/media players AND still mix them into my video with my VJ program. Very Nice. Thank you to the Curious Spy for pointing this nice little baby out to me. Tech specs and promo shot below.

The Blackmagic Hyperdeck Shuttle (much better named in my opinion of the two) is a wonderful professional grade SSD recorder. While SSD is still pretty expensive, it does mean that the device is pretty rugged, I mean the device is made out of a solid block of aluminium! A definite plus in the Vj world, where all my gear is constantly being throw around from gig to gig. Also the recorder medium being Solid State means that there is no ways to mess up the data after it is recorded! A friend that recommended this device told me this “I saw a buddy of mine take out the SSD while recording with no issues or data lose, and snap it back in and the device went right back to recording”. That is news to me in a world where no piece of equipment works the way it really should. Finally a way to record a set, in HD, with no data loss. Amazing. My next point of order is to input the audio from the night and record that too. Specs and promo shot below as well.

Our ADVC® professional family supports virtually any professional video conversion need. Each contains our innovative Canopus® DV codec technology, which provides the industry’s best picture-quality preservation during analog/DV conversion.

Our ADVC55 unit connects VHS, Hi8, and other analog video equipment to a DV camera, deck, or editing system. It’s ideal for capturing analog video into FireWire (IEEE 1394a)-equipped notebook and desktop editing computers. There are no drivers to install, and the unit does not require a power supply when used with a 6-pin FireWire (IEEE 1394a) cable.

HyperDeck Shuttle dramatically improves the quality of video cameras and is the perfect portable field recorder for live production switchers! It’s also the ultimate solution for digital signage. HyperDeck Shuttle gives you the quality and flexibility of compressed DNxHD and uncompressed recording direct to common low cost SSDs in the smallest possible size! HyperDeck Shuttle is compact, affordable and battery powered so it’s perfect as a field recorder. HyperDeck Shuttle bypasses your camera’s compression and records from SDI and HDMI direct into the highest quality video possible! SSDs are cheap and fast, so you can edit directly from the SSD media itself.

SDI Video Input

1 x 10-bit SD/HD switchable via DIN 1.0/2.3 connector.

SDI Video Output

1 x 10-bit SD/HD switchable via DIN 1.0/2.3 connector.

HDMI Video Input

1 x HDMI 1.3 type A connector

HDMI Video Output

1 x HDMI 1.3 type A connector

SDI Audio Input

16 Channels embedded in SD and HD
Avid DNxHD is 2 Channel

SDI Audio Output

16 Channels embedded in SD and HD
Avid DNxHD is 2 Channel

HDMI Audio Input

8 Channels embedded in SD and HD

HDMI Audio Output

2 Channels embedded in SD and HD

SSD Interface

1 x 2.5″ SATA 3Gb/s

Sync Input

None

Device Control

None

Recorder Control

7 buttons for local control of HyperDeck Shuttle or use USB 2.0 high speed interface